


Water

by naorisososo



Category: No Fandom, Original Work
Genre: Blood and Injury, Dark, Family Bonding, Family Feels, Fiction, Gen, Horror, Magic, Magic-Users, Monsters, Original Fiction, POV First Person, Trans Male Character, Water, Writing
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-07-17
Updated: 2020-07-17
Packaged: 2021-03-04 22:21:43
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,721
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25323820
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/naorisososo/pseuds/naorisososo
Summary: A boy and a man make a deal.





	Water

This short story was based off [this writing prompt](https://daily-prompts.tumblr.com/post/623789379544055809/prompt-1298)! Enjoy!

\- - -

“5 shells,” the greasy fat man hissed, as he tossed a few coins my way, the curl of a smirk beginning to form on the corner of his mouth.

I grabbed his wrist, “This isn’t what we agreed on!” I wanted to shout, but we were tucked in an alley where two open windows sat just begging to eavesdrop on our illegal interaction.

He pulled his wrist away from me, using his calloused hands to shove me away from him, slamming my head into the wooden side of the house. A cat meowed in amusement, as it leaped across the roof overhead. “Tough shit, kid!” he slurred, tucking the bag of BeMerry into his waistband where his fat stomach rolled over to guard it. He stared at me, curious if I would cause him any more trouble before turning his back to me, hobbling down the alleyway.

I didn’t want to use it, but he left me no choice. I needed the money that we agreed on. I had to get it.  _ For her _ .

I pulled the waterskin from behind me, hidden underneath the raggedy coat I wore. I popped the cork lid that sealed it, and the sound was enough for him to stop dead in his tracks. I could almost see his knees trembling, as he scoffed, acting like he wasn’t scared.

“Y-you think I’m scared of you, huh?” he asked, looking over his shoulder so that I could only see half of his dirt-crusted face.

“No. I  _ know _ you are.” I corrected him, taking a step towards him, holding the open waterskin cautiously out in front of me. 

The mud that we stood on top of began to bubble, as something slithered between my feet, a slimy appendage broke through the brown liquid, gripping my pant leg. Its claw had two talons that were large enough to wrap around my entire ankle, as it began to pull itself up out of the mud. I tried not to wince, as the tip of the talon pierced my skin.

“S-stop! Don’t do th-” he was facing me now, fumbling in his pockets to retrieve the money that we had agreed on, as he stumbled backward.

“Give me the money. Now!” I shouted, no longer caring who overheard our exchange. Liars don’t deserve mercy.

“F-f-fine! Here!” he tossed the bag of coins towards me, as it landed just a few feet in front of me. He fell onto his rear, as he continued to scramble away from the monstrosity that continued to climb its way up out of the mud. It was attracted to the water. They all were.

I reached down to grab the bag, opening it quickly to make sure the agreed amount was in there before tucking it inside my pocket.

“Don’t do this again, Elbert. I’ll let them eat every piece of fat, filthy meat off your bones next time.” He nodded weakly, his lips blubbering with fear, as I used my thumb to close the cork over the top of the waterskin, sealing the liquid inside. 

The bubbling of the mud slowly began to die down, as the creature hissed, no longer sensing the liquid that it craved. We both flinched at the sound before it slipped back into the mud that it came from, completely returning the ground to the way it was before - lifeless and not full of a slimy monster that could devour you in seconds.

He tried to push himself up, slipping in the wet mud and landing on his face instead. I snickered, watching him stand, wiping off his front before running out into the main path where he hooked a right and fled.

“Serves you right,.” I muttered, quickly sucking in air, as my ankle flared with pain. I looked down to see the cut begin to bleed, soaking through the ripped fabric. “Shoot…” I whispered as an older woman leaned out a window above me, reaching out to pull it shut before she saw me down below. She gasped with recognition, as she opened her mouth to call for someone, but I pulled my hood over my head, and ran out the other end of the alley, ignoring the dirt path that people stuck to. I cut across the road, and between two merchant stalls, leaving the small village behind as I made my way into the woods.

I ran a few hundred yards before I gave myself a chance to slow, catching my breath, and making sure that I wasn’t being followed. I hid behind a tree trunk, as I scanned the treeline I had just come from, listening intently for the sound of footsteps and angry villagers, but it never came. I sighed with relief, as I sat down, leaning against the tree trunk, as I pulled my shirt up, revealing a small wooden box that was tied securely around my stomach. I untied it, setting it on the ground in front of me, as I pulled my boot off, ripping the rest of the pant leg off, so I could heal the cut properly. I flipped open the latch of the box, looking inside for the correct vial that I needed to close up the wound.

Fixall.

I pulled the slender vial out of the box, as I popped the cork off, pouring the glittery red liquid over the cut. I whispered the potion’s activation spell through gritted teeth, as the liquid bubbled over the bloody surface. “ _ Heal all, fixall. _ ”

The bubbling intensified, as I leaned back against the tree, squeezing my knee to brace myself. I forced myself to breathe in and out of my nose for the next few moments until the pain suddenly stopped. I looked back down at my ankle, but there was no longer a cut there. I used the ripped fabric to wipe the remaining red liquid off of my skin before tucking it into my pocket. I slid my boot back on, tapping my toes against the ground to make sure it was snug fit. I lifted my shirt again, pressing the wooden box against my stomach before looping the rope around my torso to secure it.

The ever-present clouds in the sky made it difficult for me to determine just exactly what time it was, but I knew that I couldn’t be out in the woods for too much longer. I continued along the familiar path, as the sound of rushing water led me in the correct direction. 

I slowly snuck up to a large boulder that faced the stream that cut through the forest, cascading down underneath the mossy fallen trunks and rocks that have laid there for the past century. 

It wasn’t safe to approach the water. It never is.

Today, thankfully, they were distracted by the body of a runaway villager. Some who had wanted a better life, away from the filth and squalor, but then they ran into the reason humans were forced to live in such disgusting designs. It wasn’t anyone I recognized, but I didn’t quite stick around to do a proper investigation.

The sounds of snapping bones, ripping flesh, and sated growls filled my ears, as I tried to ignore them, moving further upstream, away from the dozens of slimy, scaly creatures that fed on the unlucky soul.

Just another hundred yards up the stream, there lay a trunk, supported by boulders on either side that acted as a bridge, or at least that’s what I’ve been using it as these past few years. I squatted near the treeline, checking the shore of the stream once and twice before deciding it was safe enough to pass. The majority of them were distracted on the body, and I ran, pushing myself up onto the boulder. I stuck my arms out on either side of myself for balance, as I stared across the stream at my destination.

“ _ Hurry. Hurry. Hurry. _ ” I chanted to myself in my head, almost halfway across. The water below me began to bubble, as the unnerving sound of claw against rock pierced my ear, breaking my concentration. I slipped on the moss-covered wood, falling to my knees, as I straddled the trunk, looking below to dozens of flashing yellow eyes watching my every move. A few hungry ones slowly pulled themself up out of the water, as I pushed myself up, taking quick, but cautious steps to continue across the stream. 

One pulled it’s limb back, slicing at the trunk and me, but I leaped off, landing roughly onto the solid ground. I tried to stand but my wrist growled at me, as a branch angrily slashed along my forearm from my landing. I fought through it, pushing myself up, and running further into the woods, clutching my wrist.

My boots squelched through the leaves and wet mud, as I cursed underneath my breath. The sounds of bubbling followed me, as I ran, zig-zagging through the foliage. It grew intense and closer until I reached the end of the forest where the mud and dirt transitioned into solid stone. I scrambled up the slope of the rocky face, pulling myself up onto a ledge, as I fell onto my back, my chest rising and falling with exhaustion. 

The talons scratched at the base of the stone hill in frustration, as I slowly sat up, watching the creature slither through the dirt, pacing along the border of rock, but it eventually retreated back to its wet habitat. I blew raspberries in its direction, as a voice called down to me from further up the rocky face.

“Careful, if they’re hungry enough, they are fully capable of crawling up after you.”

I startled a bit, as I looked up to see a familiar face, with warm brown skin and freckles just like mine, albeit more wrinkles, but I think they made her look wise.

“I know, Mother.” I continued climbing up the jagged slope until I stood face to face with her, turning to look over the forest and village that sat off in the distance. From here we could see the ominous waterfall to the north. The main cause of our troubles.

“Welcome back, E’mary,” she greeted, reaching out to inspect my forearm, as her stubby fingers brushed over the scratches. “Come inside, child, your sister has been wondering where you’ve been.” her eyebrows knit together as if she was about to reprimand me, but before she could do so she began to cough. She gripped my forearm, as she covered her mouth, bending over from the pain.

“Mother…” I whispered as the door of our home creaked open.

“E’mary...is that you?” a small voice asked, as a young girl with thick braids that flowed down either side of her face peeked her head out of the door.

I pulled my mother’s arm around my neck and began to walk her back towards the house. “Yes, Yve’ee, I’m back! Sorry to make you worry,” I called out, as thunder cracked over us, tens of thousands of feet above us. “It’s going to rain, Mother…” 

“Yes, we’ve been making preparations, my dear,.” she reassured me, as Yve’ee held the door open for us. 

The inside of our home had been carved into the face of the mountain hundreds of years ago by our ancestors. I walked my mother to a bench that was chiseled into the wall near the fire, as Yve’ee tugged on the wooden door, latching it closed.

“What else do we need to do?” I asked, before scooping Yve’ee up into my arms and planting kisses all along her cheeks and forehead.

“We just need to start the fire.” She smiled, watching her two children break into a fit of giggles and laughter, before bending over in a fit of coughs.

“I’ll take care of it.” I set Yve’ee down, kneeling in front of her, and pressing our foreheads together, as I cupped the back of her head. “We’ll be OK…” I whispered to her, looking into her fear-filled eyes, as she simply nodded.

“P-promise?” she whispered back, her threatening tears.

“Promise.” I pulled my coat off, hanging it on a point in the wall before lifting my shirt and untying my box from my stomach. “I used the last of my Fixall. Do we have more?” I asked, watching my mother point to the back of our home, as Yve’ee rubbed her back, hoping to settle her coughs.

I jogged to where there were shelves of potions, salves, and numerous concoctions that my mother and I have made over the years. It didn’t take me long to find the glittering red liquid that was stored in a rounded flask with a narrow neck. I pulled off the cork, pouring just enough over the bleeding scratches, as I winced from the searing pain. But seconds later the skin was healed. I pulled the excess fabric from before from my pocket, wiping the remaining red liquid, and setting the fabric on the stone table where we would later wring it to extract what had been absorbed. 

Stacks of firewood sat on the opposite side of the storage room, as I grabbed two split logs, holding them under each of my arms and walked them over to the front of the house. I traveled back and forth until there was a good line of firewood from wall to wall. 

A flash of lightning lit the room, illuminating Yve’ee’s scared face, as she cowered behind our mother. The thunder echoed through the air just seconds after, as I looked back at our mother. She nodded.

I grabbed a flask of orange liquid that was hot to the touch, pouring it over the dried firewood until they were sufficiently covered with it. I took a few steps back, sealing the flask before calling out the activation spell. “ _ Ignite, FireLight _ .”

The liquid instantaneously sparked into flames, as it hungrily ate up the firewood that was laid out as a protective barrier against the rain. 

“Great job, E’mary.” My mother held Yve’ee close to her, as the pitter-patter of rain could be heard falling upon the stone outside.

My feet began to vibrate, as bubbles from the mud began to come to life. I looked down to see a creature trying to escape from underneath my boot, but I pulled it off, tossing both of my shoes into the fire. The creature screamed in pain, as Yve’ee gasped, covering her eyes in mother’s bosom.

“S-sorry...I forgot about…”

“It’s OK. It’s over now,” she replied instantly. The smoke began to rise, flowing out through the wooden door and up into the sky, as the fire burned brighter and brighter.

I grabbed a piece of burning firewood, lifting it and holding it near the floor, drying up the pieces of mud I had tracked into the house until it was just dirt. I leaned against the cool stone wall, holding my head between my hands.

They were free to roam when it rained. Free to bring death and chaos wherever they went. It was no wonder that all the normal villagers craved BeMerry.

“He tried to short me, but I made him pay the full amount.” I set the bag of coins in front of my mother, as she grabbed my hand before I walked away.

“Thank you, E’mary. For everything that you do.” She looked so small and feeble now that her hair was graying and frayed. “You’re a good  _ son _ .”

I smiled, leaning down to kiss the back of her hand. I rubbed the back of my head, feeling the short, spiky hair against my palm. I’d have to shave again in a couple of weeks, but we’d have to make it through the night first.

“Thanks, mother,” I whispered, as I pulled off my frayed shirt, revealing my bound chest. “I’ll start dinner, OK?”

Yve’ee hopped out of mother’s lap, grabbing onto my pant leg, as she followed me to our stone oven where this morning’s catch hung skinned. 

“C-can I help?!” she asked, bouncing on her tiny feet, as I rustled her hair.

“Of course,” I was glad to see her take her mind off of the monsters just outside our door. Even if only for just a few hours.


End file.
